Boys Lax Group 1 Finals Preview: Summit v. Madison

On Wednesday night, the No. 1 seed Summit Hilltoppers will face the No. 6 seed Madison Dodgers in the Public, Group 1 Final. Summit reached the NJSIAA tournament finals by defeating Mountain Lakes, 9-2, in the semifinal round. Madison defeated West Essex in overtime, 8-7, to advance to the finals.

Both teams enter Wednesday's final with a "Top 10" state ranking, according to LaxPower.com. Summit (20-0) is ranked No. 1 in the state, while Madison (17-4) is ranked No. 9. Three of Madison's four season losses have been to teams ranked in the Top 5 in the state (two losses to Kinnelon, one to Summit). Madison's other loss this season was to No. 13 Chatham.

The Dodgers enter the game on a hot streak, however, having won 9 of their last 10 games.

"We'll have to work hard during practice and listen to the scouting report to prepare for Madison," said Summit attacker Nick Kilkowski, who has 36 goals and 23 assists so far this season. "We're going to play our hearts out in the final."

Summit is currently 20-0 and riding a 42-game winning streak. The New Jersey state record is 44 consecutive wins, held by Ridgewood during the 1990-1992 seasons. If the Hilltoppers could win the state title without suffering a loss on the season, they would be the first high school boys lacrosse team to do so since 1998.

As it has all season, the Hilltoppers' defense will play a crucial role in the team's success on Wednesday night against Madison. Only 6 of 19 opponents have been able to score more than two goals against the Hilltoppers this season (Madison being one of them to do so, with three goals against Summit on April 24). Summit's defense has been a dominant force as of late, only allowing seven goals in the team's five previous games.

"Madison is a very good team," Summit head coach Jim Davidson said. "We know they'll work and move the ball to try to get a good shot. Our defense will have to push their players out and, offensively, our kids just need to keep making good decisions and taking good shots. We've got to come to play."

Madison fell to Summit earlier in the season, 12-3; however, the Dodgers were without senior captain, Charlie Oldendorp, who was sidelined with an injury.

"Charlie is a very big part of our team," Madison head coach Mark Sweeney said. "He is a captain and our leading scorer. Having him in the lineup makes everyone around him better."

"It'll be a great game," said Summit goalie Brian Feeney, describing Wednesday night's matchup. "Our defense will have to push them out and force long shots. The game will have a different feel with (Charlie Oldendorp) playing. The intensity will definitely be a lot higher. But we need to not focus on that and just play the way we've been playing."

Although the two teams' previous meeting was held at Madison's home field, the Dodgers could not find their rhythm during the April 24 matchup. Madison's Austen Lein scored with just over a minute remaining in the first quarter, but Summit held a 3-1 lead after 12 minutes of play. The Dodgers scored twice in the second quarter off of goals by Will Stuhler and Chad Smith, but at the half, Summit had a 7-3 advantage.

In the third quarter, Summit's Marcel Godino scored his fifth goal of the game to increase his team's lead to 9-3. Madison's players began to show their frustration by committing multiple penalties in the game's final quarter, and Summit took advantage of several man-up opportunities. In the end, the Hilltoppers defeated the Dodgers, 12-3.

Summit's Danny Feeney helped his team gain possession by winning 13 of 16 face offs in the Hilltoppers' first meeting against Madison. His brother, goalie Brian Feeney, made seven saves on the afternoon to hold the Dodgers to just three goals. Hilltopper Johnny Scioscia led his team with six assists on the afternoon.

"We are working on an overall game plan because Summit has so many weapons on offense, a very skilled zone defense, and a fantastic goalie," Sweeney said. "I feel our players will be mentally ready because it is a state championship game. We need to play good team defense and get off a lot of shots. We'll need to test their goalie early and often."

The NJSIAA Public, Group 1 Final will be held at 7 p.m. at Livingston High School.